Italian attitude for China’s VW Golf rival

Leapmotor is repositioning itself for global markets – including Australia and Europe – with its new Volkswagen Golf rival, the B05 hatchback. Leaning on Italian chassis tuning, balanced rear-wheel-drive dynamics and a considered Euro-influenced design, it’s clearly a concerted attempt to shake off the typical ‘Chinese car’ stigma.

What’s got a 160kW motor, can sprint from 0-100km/h in 6.7 seconds, is rear-wheel drive, has Italian-tuned suspension and costs less than $36K?

It’s not Alfa Romeo’s latest hot hatch… but it was educated at the same school in Balocco, Italy.

Leapmotor's commercial head of the Europe region, Danilo Annese, all but confirmed the brand’s latest creation, the B05, was tuned by Alfa Romeo’s chassis gurus.

“I don't want to give you the names but we have departments in our Balocco test centre. There are engineers working there, they work with Leapmotor R&D together,” said the senior exec, whose Leapmotor HQ is based in Turin, Italy.

The Balocco proving ground – also used by Alfa Romeo and Maserati – has played a central role in reshaping the Leapmotor B05 for export markets.

“They [Italian suspension engineers] go to China, the guys are coming here, we get pre-production cars, they study suspension, they decide to change suspension,” he said.

The focus is on ride and handling polish rather than the softer, less resolved tune typically associated with domestic Chinese-market vehicles.

“Until three months ago they were still working on these cars, so then, we said, okay, start producing it – we like the way it drives and then they went on with production.”

Under the skin, the B05 runs a distinctly driver-focused layout for the segment, pairing rear-wheel drive with a claimed 50:50 weight distribution and independent suspension front (MacPherson strut) and rear (multi-link).

The Leapmotor B05 measures 4430mm long – roughly the same length as the Toyota Corolla and slightly longer than the Volkswagen Golf. Crucially, however, the B05’s 1880mm width makes it the widest hatch in its class (around 100mm wider than both the Corolla/Golf) which should improve interior space and provide better cornering stability.

Power comes from a 160kW/240Nm e-motor, fed by a 67.1kWh battery, with charging support of up to 168kW.

Performance figures stack up for a warm-hatch contender, with a 0-100km/h time of 6.7 seconds and a WLTP-rated driving range of 482 kilometres, alongside energy consumption rated at 15.9kWh/100km.

A smaller circa-56kWh battery pack is also available and offers around 400km of range.

All models ride on 19-inch alloy wheels with staggered tyre fitment (225/45 front and 235/45 rear) and disc brakes all round.

Beyond the numbers, Leapmotor appears to be paying close attention to design, too, with the B05 presenting a more cohesive and sleek European look compared to some rivals.

This is an intentional shift away from the over-styled or derivative ‘bubble’ approaches prevalent in many parts of the Chinese EV sector.

Leapmotor expects its MG4 XPOWER rival to play a meaningful role in its expanding global line-up, targeting a segment that has been relatively under-served by Chinese brands.

The brand’s commercial boss said early pre-orders suggest it may need to adjust production numbers to meet demand.

“If you were asking me this question two months ago I might have say 10 per cent,” Annese said of the B05’s total share of export sales.

“If you ask me today, after I see some early signs and some drive experience myself, I think we can go up to 20% because we get into a segment-C hatchback that was not, let's say, covered by many Chinese brands.

“We bring a car at very competitive price,” he added.

The Leapmotor B05 is expected to arrive in Australia around September 2026, with pricing set to start from under $36,000 with the smaller 56kWh battery, positioning it as one of the most attainable rear-wheel-drive EV hatchbacks on the market.

The brand is also plotting a hardcore B05 Ultra model with more power and even sharper suspension, due to land mid-2027 as a direct rival to the iconic Volkswagen Golf GTI.

Stay tuned for our first drive and subscribe to the carsales YouTube channel for our video review.

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